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Number: 2002-85
Date Released: July 10, 2002
POPULATION OF BATANES SHOWED AN UPWARD SWING
(Results from the 2000 Census of Population and Housing, NSO)

Population growth rate at 3.25 percent

The population of Batanes, as of May 1, 2000, stood at 16,467 persons. This was higher by 1,441 persons or 9.6 percent compared to the 1990 figure or almost twice the population of the province in 1903. The population of Batanes declined at the rate of 1.1 percent annually during the first half of the nineties but grew at the rate of 3.25 percent per year from 1995 to 2000.

Basco, the provincial capital, was the largest in terms of population

Among the six municipalities in the province, Basco, the capital of the province, registered the largest population at 6,717 persons. It accounted for 40.79 percent of the total population of the province. Itbayat followed with 3,616 persons (21.90 percent) while Mahatao registered the third at 1,895 persons (11.51 percent). These three municipalities combined comprised 74.3 percent of the province’s total population. Uyugan and Ivana had the least population with about eight percent each.

Batanes was the least populous province in Cagayan Valley

Batanes was the least populous province in (Region II) Cagayan Valley, contributing only 0.59 percent to the 2.8 million population of the region. It was also the smallest province in the Philippines in terms of population and land area.

Batanes had a median age of 22 years

Batanes had a median age of 22 years, higher by two years than the figure in 1995 (20 years). Males outnumbered females with a sex ratio of 105 males for every 100 females. However, among the population aged 60 years and over, females dominated their male counterparts.

Seven dependents for every ten economically active persons

In 2000, the population aged 0 to 14 years was 33.6 percent of the total population while those aged 65 years and over comprised 7.6 percent. The economically active population aged 15 to 64 years, thus, made up 58.8 percent of the total population in Batanes.

The overall dependency ratio in 2000 was 70. This means that for every 100 persons aged 15 to 64 years, there were about 70 dependents (57 persons aged 0 to 14 years – young dependents; and 13 persons aged 65 years and over – old dependents), an improvement of 13.5 percentage points over the 83.5 ratio reported in 1995.

Females predominated the highly educated

The Census 2000 showed that the proportion of the population 5 years old and over who attended or completed elementary education (31.0 percent) was lower than that in 1995 (37.7 percent). In the same manner, the percent of those who reached or completed high school (27.0 percent) declined by four percentage points over the 1995 figure. On the other hand, the proportions that were academic degree holders rose from 9.2 percent in 1995 to 10.3 percent in 2000. A small proportion (0.7 percent) had post baccalaureate education.

Majority of those who had attended or finished high school education were males (55.9 percent). On the other hand, those who had attended or finished college and post baccalaureate were predominated by females.

Majority were Ivatan/Itbayat

About 96 percent of the household population in Batanes classified themselves as Ivatan/Itbayat. The remaining four percent were Ilocano, Tagalog or were from other ethnic groups.

Over 50 percent were single

The largest proportion (51.1 percent) of the population 10 years old and over was single. This was higher by 2.3 percentage points as compared to the 1995 proportion of 48.8 percent. The proportion of married persons was 40.8 percent in 2000, a decrease of 3.7 percentage points from 44.5 percent in 1995. The remaining 8.1 percent were either widowed, divorced/separated, with other marital arrangements, or with unknown marital status.

Low vision was the common disability

Out of 16,467 household population of the province, only 496 persons (3.0 percent) were reported to have some types of disability. Among the disabled, persons with low vision constituted the highest proportion (31.0 percent) followed by those with difficulty in hearing (14.9 percent) and those who lost one or both legs/feet (7.3 percent).

Housing unit occupancy rate at 96.8 percent

The 2000 Census of Population and Housing showed that 96.8 percent of the housing units in Batanes (3,442) were occupied. Most of these units were single houses, which accounted for 97.1 percent. This registered a ratio of 1.01 household per occupied housing unit and 4.8 persons per occupied housing unit.

BATANES

Known as the land of Ivatans, typhoon-prone Batanes lies on the northernmost tip of the Philippines. It is the smallest province in the Philippines in terms of population and land area. Batanes has an estimated total land area of 209 square kilometers, almost one-half are hills and mountains. The people of Batanes depend mainly on small scale farming and fishing for their livelihood. A modest farm-land planted to root crops, vegetables and fruit trees is a common possession of the average family.

(Sgd.) CARMELITA N. ERICTA
Administrator

Table 1. Total Population by Municipality and Sex: Batanes, 2000

Municipalities Both Sexes Percent Male Female
Batanes 16,467 100.00 8,441 8,026
     Basco 6,717 40.79 3,432 3,285
     Itbayat 3,616 21.96 1,897 1,719
     Ivana 1,293 7.85 654 639
     Mahatao 1,895 11.51 959 936
     Sabtang 1,678 10.19 847 831
     Uyugan 1,268 7.70 652 616
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 2. Total Population by Age Group, Sex and Sex Ratio: Batanes, 2000

All Ages Total Population Male Female Sex Ratio
Batanes 16,467 8,441 8,026 105.2
     Under 1 339 179 160 111.9
     1 to 4 1,496 755 741 101.8
     5 to 9 1,889 1,011 878 115.1
     10 to 14 1,813 974 839 116.1
     15 to 19 1,672 872 800 109.0
     20 to 24 1,546 829 717 115.6
     25 to 29 1,350 673 677 99.4
     30 to 34 1,121 602 519 116.0
     35 to 39 987 518 469 110.4
     40 to 44 761 365 396 92.2
     45 to 49 657 340 317 107.3
     50 to 54 560 272 288 94.4
     55 to 59 565 287 278 103.2
     60 to 64 461 211 250 84.4
     65 to 69 412 188 224 83.9
     70 to 74 312 137 175 78.3
     75 to 79 214 92 122 75.4
     80 & Over 312 136 176 77.3
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 3. Household Population 5 Years Old and Over by Highest Educational Attainment and Sex: Batanes, 2000

Highest Educational Attainment Household Population
5 Years Old & Over		 Male Female
Batanes 14,586 7,473 7,113
     No Grade Completed 269 109 160
     Pre-School 478 269 209
     Elementary 4,527 2,229 2,298
     High School 3,941 2,203 1,738
     Post Secondary 1,570 921 649
     College Undergraduate 1,946 1,009 937
     Academic Degree Holder 1,500 368 922
     Post Baccalaureate 98 26 72
     Not Stated 257 139 118
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 4. Household Population by Ethnicity and Sex: Batanes, 2000

Ethnicity Both Sexes Male Female
Batanes 16,421 8,407 8,014
     Ivatan/Itbayat 15,834 8,108 7,726
     Ilocano 149 89 60
     Tagalog 109 53 56
     Others 248 123 125
     Not Reported 81 34 47
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 5. Total Population 10 Years old and Over by Age Group and Marital Status: Batanes, 2000

Age Group Total Population
10 Yrs Old & Over		 Single Married Widowed Divorced/
Separated		 Others Unknown
Batanes 12,698 6,486 5,179 692 77 178 86
     Below 20 3,481 3,393 33 2 1 11 41
     20 – 24 1,542 1269 237 - - 16 20
     25 – 29 1,344 733 575 2 5 21 8
     30 – 34 1,117 349 726 10 8 22 2
     35 – 39 985 199 731 15 10 28 2
     40 – 44 757 124 579 23 9 21 1
     45 – 49 654 83 518 21 12 17 3
     50 – 54 557 75 409 52 5 16 -
     55 – 59 562 66 401 74 9 13 -
     60 – 64 454 60 302 78 7 6 1
     65 – 69 411 44 260 94 9 1 3
     70 – 74 309 43 185 76 1 3 1
     75 – 79 213 19 105 87 - 1 1
     80 & Over 312 29 118 158 1 3 3
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

Table 6. Total Occupied Housing Units, Households, Household Population and Ratio of Household and Household Population to Occupied Housing Unit by Type of Building: Batanes, 2000

Type of Building Occupied Housing Unit Household Household Population Ratio of Household & Household Population
Household to
Occupied
Housing Unit		 Household
Population to
Occupied
Housing Unit
Batanes 3,442 3,489 16,421 1.01 4.77
     Single House 3,324 3,388 15,833 1.01 4.74
     Duplex 42 43 197 1.02 4.69
     Multi-unit Residential 19 19 94 1.00 4.95
     Commercial/Industrial/Agricultural 5 5 14 1.00 2.80
     Institutional Living Quarter - - - - -
     Other Housing Unit 1 1 2 1.00 2.00
     Not Reported 13 33 281 1.00 6.52
Source: NSO, 2000 Census of Population and Housing

 

TECHNICAL NOTES

Average Household Size – average number of people who live in the household

Growth Rate – the rate at which the population is increasing (or decreasing) in a given year due to natural increase and net migration, expressed as a percentage of the base population

Median Age – the age at which exactly half of the population is young and half is old

Sex Ratio – the ratio of males to females in a given population expressed as the number of males per 100 females

Age-Dependency Ratio – the ratio of persons in the "dependent" ages (under 15 years and over 64 years) to those in the "economically productive" ages (15 to 64 years old) in the population

Household – a social unit consisting of a person or a group of persons who sleep in the same housing unit and have common arrangements in the preparation and consumption of food

The 2000 Census of Population and Housing (Census 2000) was undertaken by the National Statistics Office (NSO) in May 2000, as mandated by Commonwealth Act No. 591, Batas Pambansa Blg. 72 and Executive Order No. 121. It was the 11th census of population and 5th census of housing undertaken in this country since the first census in 1903. It was designed to take an inventory of the total population and housing units all over the Philippines and to collect information about their characteristics. Census day for the Census 2000 was May 1, 2000 (12:01 a.m.). Enumeration started on May 1, 2000 and lasted for about 30 days.

The population count of Agusan del Norte excludes the count of Butuan City, being a highly urbanized city. A separate Press Release was prepared for each highly urbanized city. As defined in the 1991 Local Government Code, a city is considered highly urbanized if it has an annual income of not lower than fifty million pesos based on 1991 constant prices, as certified by the city treasurer; and its population is at least two hundred thousand (200,000) inhabitants, as certified by NSO.

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Page last revised: July 10, 2002